The Hindu Business Line : Friday, July 15, 2005

Big corporates pick Nalsar students at campus recruitment
LAW graduates from the Nalsar Law University here have got placement offers with leading firms and corporates, with pay packages in the range of Rs 3-9 lakh per annum. Leading legal firms like Amarchand & Mangaldas & Suresh A Shroff & Co; More

CLIMATE & WEATHER

Rain belt shifts East as `break monsoon' vigil continues
THE National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting (NCMRWF) maintained its `monsoon break' watch for a second day, reiterating that favourable conditions are building up for the expected denouement around Sunday. The rain belt is now ... More

SOCIAL SECURITY

CBT meeting on July 30 to fix PF interest rate
THE Central Board of Trustees (CBT) of the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) will meet on July 30 to decide the interest rate payable to provident fund subscribers for fiscal 2005-06. Last year, the Board had made a final ... More

ECONOMY

Global uncertainties have increased, says RBI Governor
THE Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, Dr Y.V. Reddy, said that global uncertainties "have increased compared to what we estimated." He said the RBI was "analysing, still looking into it" and that the central bank hoped to come out with an ... More

FICCI chalks out agenda for Karnataka's growth
THE Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) has made a 15-point agenda to take Karnataka's economy to a new high and has offered to partner with the State Government in implementing it. At a presentation made during the ... More

FOREIGN TRADE

Ahead of US visit, industry captains meet PM
TEN top captains of the industry, including Mr Ratan Tata, Mr Mukesh Ambani and Ms Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, today met the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, ahead of his forthcoming US visit. They were seeking guidance on the issues they would ... More

FICCI urges caution on free trade pacts
FICCI has urged the Centre to exercise great caution while entering into preferential or free trade agreements. The rules on the origin of goods should be studied carefully and followed strictly with any preferential partner; otherwise it ... More

Call to boost trade ties with Thailand
THE Bangalore Chamber of Industry and Commerce (BCIC) has called for greater cooperation between the business community in Thailand and Karnataka. To boost ties, the Thai Trade Center, Royal Thai Consulate - General, had organised `Thailand ... More

HEALTH

France shows the way in paediatric cardiac care
INDIA, which is grappling with the problem of congenital heart defects in children, can perhaps emulate France in tackling it more effectively. The fact that about 18,000 children are born with cardiac defects every year in Andhra Pradesh alone ... More

PETROLEUM

LNG transportation — Shipping Ministry to counter move to relax charter norms
With the Indian shipping industry understandably unhappy over this move, the Shipping Ministry has now initiated a move to thwart any attempt to relax the existing LNG vessels chartering policy. More

Petrol dealers drop strike plan
VEHICLE owners can heave a sigh of relief. Petroleum retail traders, who had planned to go on an indefinite strike from Monday, have called off their strike following some interim relief granted by the Government. The dealers were planning to ... More

Fuel purchase price: Reliance-PSU oil cos' deadlock to end soon
THE deadlock between Reliance Industries Ltd and the State-owned oil marketing companies (OMCs) on the fuel purchase price to be paid by the latter to the private sector oil company may end soon. Industry sources said that while RIL has ... More

Crude pipeline: IOC to offer project consultancy to CPCL
THE pipelines division of Indian Oil Corporation has signed an agreement to provide Chennai Petroleum Corporation Ltd (CPCL) project management consultancy services for a proposed crude oil pipeline from Chennai Port Trust to Manali ... More

TAXATION

Finance Ministry to come out with clarifications on FBT soon
Despite the hiccups including ground level problems at the level of the bank branches, corporates are taking the FBT on their stride and looking to comply with the provisions. More

India Inc ready to implement FBT
Mr M.R. Rajaram, CFO, ICI India Ltd, said that the company was geared up to fully implement the FBT. "There are some areas of concern like superannuation. Also the clarifications from the Government on some aspects such as what would ... More

TEXTILES

Garment exporters grapple with tax, DEPB problems
SIX months after the quota regime was dismantled, garment exporters are grappling with income-tax problems, increased transaction costs and bureaucratic tangles. I-T authorities have reopened cases from 1997 on the grounds that the DEPB (Duty ... More

Textile exporters upset over service tax on air cargo
TEXTILE exporters from Tamil Nadu have resented extending the service tax on air cargo under export of services rules by the Central Excise authorities, the nodal agency for collection of service tax. The 10.2 per cent tax on the airfreight of ... More

RADIO/TV

Sporting events of national importance — Broadcasters against compulsory sharing of feed with DD
MANDATORY sharing of signals for sporting events of national importance with Prasar Bharati has become a contentious issue as private broadcasters are not in favour of a legislation for this. At a CII conference on `Sports Broadcasting & ... More

EDUCATION

Engg college in pact with South Dakota school
SRI Ramakrishna Engineering College (SREC) has tied up with the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (SDSM&T). The MoU signed by Mr Charles P. Ruch, President of SDSM&T, and Mr R. Venkatasalu, Managing Trustee, SNR Trust (representing More

CARS

Moving into top gear
The automobile industry has nearly trebled in size during the last decade. Rising income, easily available car loans, and inadequate public transport systems are fuelling this growth. More

My car...
So what drives a customer to buy one brand and not another? Jagadish Velusamy, a software engineer in Bangalore, bought a Zen a few months ago, because it was "small, cute, trouble-free, reliable, had diesel option, and fit my budget." But the ... More

REAL ESTATE & CONSTRUCTION

FDI in real estate bogged down by ambiguity in norms: FICCI survey
AMBIGUITIES in the revised FDI guidelines for township, housing, built-up infrastructure, construction-development projects and absence of time-bound project clearances are some of the major impediments for FDI inflows, according to a ... More

Heera homecare division
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Heera Construction Company has announced the setting up of a 24-hour homecare services division exclusively for the benefit of dwellers in its 20 properties across the State. Announcing this here, Dr A.R. Babu, ... More

PRECIOUS METALS

Spot gold may test support level
SPOT gold prices headed lower triggered by a narrower than expected US trade deficit in May. The US Government reported the trade gap in May narrowed to $55.35 billion, lower than expectations easing concerns on external deficits. Gold's rally ... More

FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT

TN alliance to campaign against FDI
REPRESENTATIVES of all major traders associations and trade unions in Tamil Nadu have decided to oppose foreign direct investment (FDI) in retail, particularly the entry of Wal-Mart into the country. Mr Wade Rathke, Chief Organiser, ... More

RURAL DEVELOPMENT

Malaprabha Grameena Bank bags award for SHG scheme
THE Dharwad-based Malaprabha Grameena Bank, a regional rural bank sponsored by Syndicate Bank, has covered 80,000 families under self-help groups (SHGs) in its area of operation, according to Mr B.S. Surendra, Chairman of the grameena bank. ... More

HUMAN RESOURCES

Training can boost company returns, says expert
"This is the right time to start training activities because companies are competing globally now." More

EVENTS

CII meet in Tiruchi on power sector
THE Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Tiruchi Zone is organising an exhibition and conference on power sector and Tiruchi's capabilities in manufacturing power generating equipment. According to a press release from the CII, the three-day ... More

INCOME TAX

I-T Kolkata may provide UTI-ISL help on PAN
URGING small taxpayers to make full use of the `Help Centres,' being set up at various chamber premises outside the Income-tax department, the Chief Commissioner of Income Tax-Kolkata-1, Mr P.C. Sinha, said here on Thursday that he was also ... More

Income tax help centre
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Income-Tax Department has opened a help centre here in accordance with the announcement made by the Finance Minister in Parliament. The Thiruvananthapuram Chamber of Commerce, the local chapter of the Institute ... More

EXPORTS & IMPORTS

Edible oils import up 27 per cent
EDIBLE oils imports increased by 27 per cent to 30,62,419 tonnes during first eight months of the current oil year (November 2004-June 2005) from 24,03,609 tonnes during the corresponding period last year. Imports in June 2005 were lower at ... More

ECONOMIC OFFENCES

AP to seek CBI probe into deals over Volkswagen
THE Andhra Pradesh Government has decided to seek a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation to clear the air surrounding investments into Vashishta Wahan (P) Ltd, a special purpose vehicle created for the proposed Volkswagen greenfield car ... More

AP Industries Minister to be shifted
THE State Major Industries Minister, Mr Botsa Satyanarayana, who is in the thick of the controversy relating to the creation of the SPV, Vashishta Wahan, and the payments made to it by APIIC, has offered to relinquish his ... More

Naidu demands Industry Minister's dismissal, probe into other issues
THE Telugu Desam leader and former Chief Minister, Mr N. Chandrababu Naidu, has demanded that the Major Industries Minister, Mr Botsa Satyanarayana, be dismissed for the role he played in the negotiations with Volkswagen, the German car company, ... More

Kickback charges on bauxite deal with Jindals denied
REFUTING the allegations of Opposition parties, the Andhra Pradesh State Mines & Geology Minister, Ms P. Sabita Indra Reddy, has denied kickbacks to the Chief Minister in offering bauxite-mining facilities to the O.P. Jindal Group-owned Jindal .. More